You Can't Take Me
by Misgiving Writer
Summary: It isn't the first time that Clint's 'quit' the Avengers. It is, however, the first time that he's left his Comm behind and the first time that there's such a bad fight before it happens. But now no one can find him and they don't know what to do.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Yes, I have started yet another Avengers story that stars Clint. Is this really a surprise to anyone? No? I didn't think so. Anyway, I'm going to use this moment to tell everyone out there to check out The Avengers Challenge Forum - because while this isn't written for a challenge on there, you can find some pretty cool ideas on it. *is not ashamed to advertise*

I also want to mention that this story is completely inspired by the song _You Can't Take My by Bryan Adams_. Yes, the one that they play during _Spirit: Stallion Of The Cimmaron._

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><p><em><strong>'Sometimes, you say something you didn't mean. Sometimes, you're forgiven for it. Eventually, you're not.'<strong>_

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><p>"<em>Why the hell would you say that to him?<em>"

Tony jumped, dropping the pen that he'd been rolling around on his desk, and snapped his head over to the doorway. "What?"

"I said, why the _hell_ would you say that to him?" Pepper hissed again. She let the door swing close on its own and stalked over to stand in front of Tony's desk, staring down at him with narrowed eyes.

Tony blinked, not sure exactly what his assitant was mad at him over this time. He had said a lot of things, most of them not very nice, to a lot of people over the course of the day. "Say what to who?"

"Clint." Pepper didn't shout but, if the way that Tony flinched was anything to go by, her message was still coming across loud and clear. Still letting Tony know that, by no means, was she happy over the arguement that had taken place almost three hours prior.

She would have been up here sooner, if she had known. Actually, it might never have even happened if she had known that the fight was going on. But Pepper had been on a different floor of the manor entirely, on the phone with one of the many share-holders of Stark Industries, and had only just been told.

Steve was barely able to finish telling her about what had happened, in a voice far too upset for someone like him to have to use, before Pepper was out the door and on the elevator. The whole ride up had been spent fuming, turning words around in her head, working out exactly what she was going to say to her boss.

And the moment she opened the door, saw Tony behind his desk looking completely _bored_, it all just flew from her head. With it, the composure that she normally maintained no matter what idiotic stunt the Stark heir pulled.

"Tony," Pepper closed her eyes for a moment, drawing in a deep breath. "what the hell were you thinking?"

Wisely, Tony kept his sarcastic answer to himself. Instead he gave a half-hearted shrug. "That he had been an idiot."

"_Tony_." Did he even understand what had happened? That he'd just lost a member of the Avengers for what could very well have been for real? Pepper had almost nothing to do with the band of heroes and she _still_ knew better than to say what Tony had! "_Why_ would you say that?"

"Because it's true!" Tony snapped at her. He slapped one hand down on top of his desk and frowned right back at Pepper. "It's true, Pepper, and last week proved it."

Last week...When the Avengers had been fighting Whirlwind and Clint had gotten very intimate with a solid brick wall. The doctors had informed Pepper, who was always in charge of dealing with them, that it had almost broken the archer's back. That Clint was lucky it had just been thrown. That he shouldn't be up and on it for the next two months unless he wanted to risk permant damage.

That, as Steve had explained to her, was the basis of the fight.

Clint had shown up at Stark Manor, fully dressed in the pink and purple suit he wore when they went on a mission, right on time for a patrol to check out some disturbances down at the dock. A patrol that Tony had given to Hank instead.

Clint had demanded to know why.

_Because you're still hurt, damnit!_

Tony had been less then leniant when it came to giving it back to him.

_What do you think will happen if you go out there now and fight? You'll lose and they'll all get away._

And words that should never have been spoken had been said.

_You're just a human, Clint! You have to take it easy!_

Steve had said that he'd never seen Clint punch so hard, and the large bruise on the side of Tony's face was proof that he hadn't been exaggerating. The Avengers Comm Card that Pepper was clutching, also given to her by the throughly ruffled Captain, was proof enough to the red-haired assitant that Clint didn't plan on coming back this time. At least not for a good while.

"You know what else is true?" Pepper asked, mouth set in a thin line and eyes looking far more dissaproving then they had in a long time. "You're just a human too, Tony. Suit or not, you aren't a God or a mutant or whatever you want to call Steve. You're human and you're just as breakable as Clint is."

Tony opened his mouth to say something, to _defend_ himself from the accusation, but found that he couldn't think of anything to say. Because, even if he didn't want to admit it, Pepper was right.

She was always right.

"Exactly." Pepper said. She laid the Comm Card down on Tony's desk, pushed her glasses back onto her nose, and gave her boss a weary look. "You need to apologize to him, Tony. He _needs_ to be on this team, Tony, whether you like it or not."

With that, Pepper turned on her heel and left the room.

Tony let out a sigh and slumped back down into his chair. Pepper was right, of course, but that didn't mean that he liked what she had to say. It didn't make admiting he was just a regular human, just like Clint was, any easier. And it certainly didn't make the thought of having to apologize to someone, especally not to someone that he got along with so completely horribly, sit well in his mind.

It wasn't like he'd been trying to upset Clint. Tony was just naturally blunt, even more so when he thought that the person he was talking to should already know what he was saying. And Clint, obviously, should have known that trying to go on patrol when he was still hurt was ridiculous. The rest...Tony hadn't meant to say the rest. He hadn't wanted to hurt the other man, let alone make him quit the team. And he _certianly_ wasn't trying to make Clint punch him.

Apologizing to Clint was the only thing he _could_ do.

But it would have to wait, because work at his company came second only to work as an Avenger.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: I'm alive! *throws hands up and cackles* I am so, so sorry for the huge delay in this story. I just...Get distracted really, really easily. Not to mention real life has finally caught up with me and I have practically no time at all. Ever. But! Enough about me! I have some notes about my story for all you wonderful readers.

First, I know that this chapter is short. The other chapters will be longer. I just...I couldn't get this chapter to stretch out any further. My muse simply would not allow me. That final line in here was what I _had_ to end it with. I mean, I tried writing past it three different times and just ended up deleting it all because the flow seemed off to me. So don't worry. This isn't the size that all the chapters will be.

Second, it doesn't matter how long I go without updating. I will never, _never,_ leave a story unfinished. Ever.

Third, this chapter has actually been written up for a while. ^.^" I just found it floating around my dash and decided; hey! I should start writing this again! So, hopefully, you'll see this updated more frequently. This chapter, I warn you, is completely un-edited.

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><p>"He's not here."<p>

Steve blinked. Furrowing his brows, he tilted his head in Tony's direction as a way of asking for a larger explanation. Tony, either not seeing the nod or just ignoring it, continued to walk around the holograph he'd brought up.

It was a 3D version of the entire manor, he'd explained. The house itself was made out of a hazy, green static. Inside of the static were small streaks and spots of lights, bubbles of color, and the occasional blinking dot. It could show whatever form of item Tony asked Jarvis to locate. People, tools, the numerous cups of coffee that Tony left laying about all over the place. Everything. And all Tony had to do was hit a button and say what he was looking for.

To Steve, it was just a large mess of colors. To be brutally honest, Steve still wasn't even sure how Tony had even made the glowing schemetic appear, much less how he worked it. Just as he was about to ask the other man what he meant, and point out that it was rude to ignore him even if the question hadn't been asked out loud, Tony let out an irritated sigh.

"As far as I can tell, Clint hasn't been in here since he left yesterday night." Tony didn't get what the Captain's sudden interest in his and the other Avenger's where abouts was. It wasn't like Clint spent more time then he had to in the manor. Which was fine by Tony, as Clint had the annoying habit of breaking _at least_ one of his collectable decorations whenever he came by. Tony was also completely positive that Clint did it on purpose too.

Sure, the fight the day before had been bad. Yes, Tony really should have gone off and apologized to him then. But did the fact that Clint didn't show up ready for work that he shouldn't be doing really need to cause such a big deal? Maybe the other man had just finally smartened up and stayed at his house, wherever that was, to get some rest. Everyone knew he needed it.

"I've gone over every inch of the manor and it's just you, me, and Pepper in here right now." Tony explained. "So if that was it, I've got some tweaks I need to make to my suit."

Steve shook his head, fully worried now. Thor had called a few minutes ago to let him know that Clint wasn't at the Wakanda Embacy. And if he wasn't there, or in the manor, then Steve didn't know where he could have gone. "I need you to see if you can find him, Tony. Check and see if he's out in the city somewhere."

Tony waved a hand through the hologram. It dissapeared in a flurry of green sparks, leaving a clear path between himself and Steve. "Why?"

"Excuse me?" What did Tony mean 'why'? Steve had already explained that Clint had gone missing. What other reason would there be?

"I _mean_ why this time?" Tony stressed, arms crossing themselves over his chest. "Clint's always running off without telling anyone. He's almost as bad as Hulk is about it! Why do you want to know where he's gone to this time?"

No one ever checked out where Clint ran off too when he 'quit' the team. After the first time they just didn't worry about it. He always came back after a week or two of cool off time. And he always got his place back on the team. Which meant that it didn't really matter where the archer left to. Even if Pepper thought it did; it wouldn't really be that different this time, would it?

Steve didn't say anything right away. He knew Tony had good reason not to be concerned over Clint's absence. But there was something off, very off, about it this time. "He always tells Hulk where he goes, Tony, and he didn't this time. No one's been able to get a hold of him since the two of you got into that fight. I'm worried."

Tony sighed and rolled his eyes. Muttered a few choice words under his breath and made it quite clear that he thought what they were doing was stupid. But he started typing in the code that would bring up images of the city onto the compute moniters anyway because, frankly, he _couldn't_ just tell Steve 'no'. And maybe he was just a little bit worried too.

Four hours later and Tony had run every scan he had for locating someone in the city. Every computer screen in his lab had some sort of program up and running on it. A map here, a locator there. Tony had even, at one point, run a scan that lifted images from every security camera in the city.

There was no sign of Clint anywhere.


	3. Chapter 3

Three weeks ago, Clint had gone missing. At first, Tony had tried not to worry about it, to ignore that the archer was gone. He always came back, after all, no matter what had pissed him off.

Fourteen days ago, Tony sat down in his office for a serious search. It was Pepper's idea, her request, really, and he didn't have much to do that day anyway. So he sat down and started looking and, no matter what program he ran, nothing came back on Clint.

Five days ago, Tony finally admitted to himself that he was just a touch worried. No matter what he said, Clint was a valued member of their team. The archer made work easier, which meant that Tony had less to worry about.

That was it.

That was the only reason he was worried - and nothing anyone said could make him say differently.

Two days ago, he recieved a message from Fury. There were HYDRA agents spotted in town. They had killed themselves before any information could be gathered.

Eight hours ago, Tony had sent the group of Avengers that made up the main team out to scour the city and its surrounding areas. Due to the fact that there was such a huge spand of area to be checked, and that he was more than a touch worried now, they had all been seperated. No teams. Just an Avenger a place.

It made sense, when thought about on a large scale. The more areas that they looked through, the more likely it was that they would find Clint. The quicker things would get back to normal, and Tony would be able to brush off that nagging feeling of guilt that ate away at his chest each day

hour

minute

second that ticked by and no word was heard of.

On a smaller scale though, sending one person out to look through each spot was only making the work more difficult. Places such as the old docks just outside of town, which was where Steve had been sent, were harder to look through without a group. It was too big of a place with too many nooks and crannies and too much that could be over-looked.

The fact that it hadn't actually been used in years and, as such, had no lighting of any form didn't help in the slightest.

During the day, it hadn't been too much trouble to look over things. But as the sun started to set and the shadows started to grow it turned into a different story. The passages between abandoned warehouses turned into a maze, the piles of half-broken crates turned into blockades in his path, the noise of waves hitting a concrete shore became a constant that wared at Steve's nerves and made him flinch.

In the steadily growing darkness, he got turned around and thrown off the meticulate path that he'd been following, the only way he could ensure that he checked through every building. Somehow, he ended up at the most western edge of the docks right where the manmade structures ended and the Wilderdeem Forest began. And, by complete chance, he caught sight of something that shouldn't have been there out of the corner of his eye.

A path.

It was a small one, formed by someone walking in the same spot over and over again. Just flattened weeds and branches kicked to the side, but it was there and it was visible and it shouldn't have been. The Wilderdeem Forest was a landmark in their town and off limits to everyone. Even he didn't have the jurisdiction to go traipsing through those trees, not unless he went straight to Fury on the matter.

And, for the briefest of moments, Steve considered doing just that. Going to get that little slip of paper that would allow him legal access, because that was the right thing to do. The right thing, but not the smart thing, and was this war just yet?

He felt like it was. Like there was more lurking in those woods aside from a bear, and that there just wasn't time to go and see the SHIELD officer.

So Steve followed his gut and went into the woods, boots following that well-worn trail. It went deep, deep, deep into the darkness of the forest. Branches hung low, scraped against Steve's face, his cheeks, and he had to move slow to try and avoid breaking more of them then need be.

He may have been trespassing, but he didn't want to destroy the proud forest.

Eventually, the path twisted and the sea was once more echoing in his ears. Water slamming into rocks and a single flickering light, hooked to the side of an old cabin. The front window was broken and the door sat ajar, and Steve couldn't stop the way his stomach clenched because he just knew -

this wasn't normal and it wasn't right and how many times had this happened to him before? Had he found abandoned outposts with dead inside, with forgotten men and women who had just been left? How many fellow soldiers had he been forced to carry back to camp, to write letters to their loved ones for? Too many, far too many, and he didn't want to do it again. Not now, not with Clint -

but he took a deep breath anyway, trying to quell the rapid beat of his heart and slowly made his way inside of the anciant fishing hut.

Steve fumbled until he found the switch, not really expecting it to work. It did, though, and yellow light flooded the one room building. There wasn't much inside.

A chair.

Cut-through ropes.

Blood - and a lot of it. Dried on the floor and the wooden chair, and Steve felt hsi stomach drop when he moved over to it. Maybe it wasn't from Clint, he told himself, but some other poor soul that had wandered too far into the woods?

Except that was Clint's Comm sitting there, partially under the chair. There was no doubt about it. The design was unique to the Avengers communication devices, and Steve ran one thumb over the cold metal.

It hissed and then crackled to life.

_"I don't understand why you haven't just told me yet, Hawkeye."_ The voice, sly and cold sounding, played out of their missing team-mates Comm Card. _"It isn't like I haven't given you the proper incentive. Haven't I? Perhaps you need more?"_

The Comm hadn't been built to show images. Up until recently, Tony was the only one that could record messages on it. At that moment, Steve wasn't sure whether he should be glad for that or not. It kept him from seeing whatever sad shape Clint was in but, in turn, that was the biggest drawback. He had no idea how bad off the archer was.

_**"Fuck off, Morrow."**_ Clint's voice this time. _**"You don't have enough 'incentive' to make me tell you anything."**_

The other mans voice, Steve realized, was distinct even when it sounded like he had just swallowed a large glass of salt-water. Raspy. Weak. And still flinging insults like they were bread crumbs for the birds.

_"Oh? Is that so? Because I think I've got something that will make you think twice about that."_ The other man, Morrow, sounded almost gleeful. Like he'd just had the most brilliant idea and couldn't wait to explain it.

The tone made Steve almost sick. He'd heard it before, several times, during the second World War. It came from the cruelest of men on both sides. From the ones that, when captives were taken, _enjoyed_ retrieving information about the other side. The ones that were the coldest of the cold and the meanest of the mean. Right before they struck.

_**"Let me guess. Is it your face?"**_ Clint asked driely.

There was a snort before Morrow's voice sounded again. _"You might be joking now but, by the time I leave here, I doubt you'll be so brave."_

The sound of boots hitting concrete filtered through the piece of electronic in Steve's hand. Rustling of fabric. A soft clink, most likely from the Comm being dropped to the floor.

_"Are you still ready to joke with me, Little Man?"_ Morrow asked.

And that was when the screaming started.


End file.
